Smith. — On the Tohunga-Maori. 265 



a subject on which a vohime might be written. It seems to 

 me that the mysterious word ihi found in several combina- 

 tions in Maori karakias will be found hereafter to represent 

 their idea of hypnotism. 



As to telepathy, there are several incidents known — some 

 of them to European eye-witnesses — in which the old and 

 learned Maori could influence persons at a distance — could, 

 for instance, by conveying a telepathic message, bring back 

 from a distance some relative or friend. All of this is accom- 

 panied by karakia as usual, which m this case is called an iri. 

 It is known to be expressly used for the purpose of causing a 

 meeting between distant persons, one of whom desires to see 

 the other. I have had such a karakia applied to myself, and 

 my friend was confident that we should meet soon ; as a 

 matter of fact we did meet, but I am afraid the necessary 

 faith on my part was too much wanting to allow me to set 

 down our meeting to the efficacy of his karakia, whatever he 

 may have thought. 



In all these things the karakia was a necessary adjunct. 

 It represented the demand made by the Polynesian order 

 of mind for some ostensible outward sign connecting cause 

 and effect. Ask any old Maori what is the cause of deeds 

 effected by incantation or invocation, and he will tell you it 

 was the karakia itself, the form of words used. The mental 

 operations antecedent to or giving rise to the karakia are not 

 known or hinted at. In this I think they show that the 

 origin of the karakia has been lost — that the real mental pro- 

 cesses out of v/hich arises their forms of hypnotism, telepathy, 

 &c., are now unknown to them, though in the far -distant 

 past the two processes were not separated. 



It has already been stated that the efficacy of a karakia, 

 whether used by priest or people, consisted in the absolute 

 fidelity with which the formula was pronounced. The mis- 

 take of a word was fatal. They were recited in a peculiar 

 voice, partaking somewhat of the nature of our intoning, in 

 which the words flowed on in an even and rapid stream, 

 broken only by the necessity for taking breath. That was 

 the usual procedure ; but there are some karakias whose 

 effect only followed the unbroken contmuous stream of words 

 from beginning to end. In this case a relay of priests would 

 be ready to take up the words so soon as the first one's breath 

 failed. It is to be regretted that so much of the meaning of 

 these prayers has been lost. They are so full of allusions 

 to things we have no knowledge of that their translations are 

 often, to our ideas, meaningless. Their name is legion, and 

 they were applicable to every event in life. In the use of 

 these karakias on every occasion the Maori was probably one 

 of the most religious races known. 



